Depths of Black
by Kami-no-Namida
Summary: There once was a castle everyone thought abandoned. However not everything is as it seems and Vernon Dursley gets to know just that when he trespasses on the forbidden garden. What else however would his nephew be for if not to become a sacrifical lamb when something goes wrong? A different take on "The Beauty and the Beast" Mpreg, AU, Rated T for now
1. Single Rose, The First Encounter

_**Hi there (^0^)/**_ and Merry Christmas, this is my take on how the fairytale _**The Beauty and the Beast **_should have went :3... Also in case you didn't know up till now, this is a **_Severus x Harry _**story... if you don't like that I think you should rather leave...

For those who stayed: I hope you'll like it~ (^^)

And unlike any of my previous ff this one has a main picture which I've drawn myself :3, see ahead, I hope you like it xD

**Warning:** _(for future reference)_ AU, Slash, mentions of abuse (not sexual), possibly_ (-turn-surely)_ Mpreg

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter, J. K. Rowling does... nor do I own the plot of The Beauty and the Beast... I'd be dead by now if I did (^^;)

* * *

**... Depths of Black ...**

**1. Single Rose, The First Encounter**

Once upon a time there was a family consisting of four members.

However it was not a happy family one might expect in a fairytale.

Because out of that four-member family there was one member who _definitely_ was not happy. For he never felt a part of that family.

This one person was called Harry.

Harry was a cousin to the other child of the family, Dudley, and he was brought to live with them on a day surrounded by mysterious circumstances, which however never made last of his blood relatives to feel obligated to care for him.

He was no more than a slave to the family...

He was not loved in that family... and its members did anything they could think of to prove just that.

And that one day of all, the one which was meant to change Harry's life and set events he never thought possible into motion, was no different.

...

"_Freak!_ Come here you useless waste of space!" screamed Vernon, the Master of the family through his Mansion, knowing full well that its corridors will lead the sound to the room which was without windows and was no bigger than a cupboard, where the person being called was forced to live.

And soon enough the said person came out of it.

Harry, a boy with dark hair which seemingly defied gravity and eyes of piercing green colour which was partly dimmed by his glasses was also a boy very small for his age of fifteen... but then again, being "raised" in a limited space with little to no food and loads of heavy workload would do that to _anyone_. Even raised like that however Harry never grew into a bitter person and everyone but his family in the Mansion liked him.

"What is it Uncle?"

Harry was forbidden to use the names of the members of the family. The only woman of the family, Petunia, ordered so, saying that she was disgusted with only the thought of the boy saying her name out loud.

"I'm going out to the town, prepare the carriage for my departure, including the cases with clothes which Petunia feels to have no use anymore and are to be sold. They are in the Clothing room opposite to the Master suite."

Once that was said Harry who knew better than to complain and was already on the way to the second floor of the Mansion.

He was by no means surprised when he found out that his Uncle chose the biggest and heaviest wooden cases to be carried, some of them weighing about twenty kilograms by itself, not to even think how heavy they were with four or five dresses which weighed at least five kilograms each.

'Better get to it now, I guess...' Harry only thought as he took the handles of the first case, already mentally preparing himself for the pain in the back he was sure to get once taking care of all the six cases.

He however did not think to complain, because every time he did something his Uncle deemed as overstepping of the bounds, a punishment was sure to come.

Getting punishment for no good reason was bad enough. The punishment for not doing chores or breaking rules was however worse.

And Harry would work as a mute if it would be needed to avoid these.

...

Vernon Dursley was preparing to leave for the town when his son appeared next to him.

"Daddy! Are you going to the town?" Dudley asked, already thinking of all the things his father will bring to him.

"Yes, I am. Is there anything special you want?" the obese man asked his equally hindered son.

"Yes! I want that new sweets from Honeydukes and Chocolate frogs from there of course, they're my favourite, and something from that new fabric Madame Malkin advertises as of the best quality and..."

"Okay, okay... I'll bring all that and much more..." Vernon nodded to his son. As much as he hated the wizarding world as whole - not broadcasting it though, who knew what the freaks would do to him then - he would get over that for his son's sake, for the boy seemed taken with the newest trends of the magical world also. And so he always brought something for his child, not caring about the other boy his son's age who lived with his family as an equivalent to the wizarding House Elf.

A boy who watched the man leaving, still heaving a bit from the excercise he was forced to get when preparing the carriage. At least the coachman was a kind man and readied the horses himself when Harry asked him, otherwise he would have to do that also.

'I want something from the town also...' Harry thought, never before getting a present, his eyes sliding to the perfectly trimmed garden, caring for it being his work also. 'Even a single flower would be enough.'

Once Harry looked up again it was in time to see the carriage disappear from the sight.

'Is it too much to ask for a single rose?'

_Be careful what you wish for Harry..._

...

Vernon Dursley was content with his purchase when he was returning from the town. He sold all the dresses passing them as new ones - which they pretty much were as his wife only wore them once or twice before deeming them too boring - and bought her new ones. He bought all the things his son wanted and even more as he bought everything he thought his son might show the slightest interest in... And he also bought a new whip to use on the freak when he misbehaved.

'A great purchase indeed.'

All that however slipped his mind for a moment when he passed the great castle everyone has thought abandoned... just as he always did.

"Stop here!" the man screamed, nearly causing the coach driver to fall off his seat. The poor man however did as ordered.

As the fat man stepped out of the carriage he started walking down the path to the castle, caring only little for the big rusty lock he took off the gate before entering.

"Sir! That is not a good idea!" the coachman cried out, seeing the man walk into the private property which the castle was.

"Shut up, or you're jobless!" Vernon only shot back. The red-headed coach driver had no other choice but to do just that. He after all had a family of nine - including himself - to take care of. And there were not many free posts as of the moment. What if he really lost his job, as measly as it was paid?

And so the Dursley walked down the path still and only stopped walking when he came upon roses which started to border the path when it neared the castle.

The man felt the urge to pick one up, even when not understanding why.

"Maybe Pet would like one?" he asked himself out loud. "For sure she will."

And like that he incautiously picked the prettiest rose he saw, pleased with himself for getting the rose for free... until he heard a low-pitched voice behind himself.

"Just what do you think you are doing?"

In that moment the man froze completely. He only turned around when the low voice spoke up again, lengthening the only consonant in the word he said, making it sound like a hiss.

"So?"

Once Vernon turned around he nearly fainted. There, looking at him from a _very_ close distance was a giant snake... the hissing sound was indeed no coincidence.

"What do you think gives you the right to just come and pick one of _my_ roses, filthy muggle?" the snake continued. In that moment Vernon cared less for the fact that snake should_ not_ be speaking to him. He was thinking how to get out of the situation.

"I only wanted to get one of them for..." he broke off. He could by no means drag his wife to it, who knows what the snake would do to her if it knew?

"For who?"

"For my nephew." Vernon said, pleased with himself of thinking up the lie. Maybe the snake would hurt the freak like that. One more great way to punish the waste of skin for even existing.

"Really?" somehow Vernon was sure that if snakes had eyebrows, the one before him would be raising one of them up for sure.

"Oh, really, he just _loves_ spending time in the garden..." Vernon went on that was not a whole truth though. As much as Harry loved the flowers in the grand garden he by no means was happy to do everything on it by hand, forced to stay outside with no water or food until his work was completed.

"Bring him here."

"Excuse me?"

"Bring. Him. Here! You stupid muggle, have you gone deaf?"

"But why..." Vernon was by no means pleased with the vision of having to actually _hire_ someone to work in his house. It cost money... whilst the work of the freak was for free.

"Give him the rose you picked, for it can not be returned to ground, as an exchange for that the boy is required to come here. The rose will bring him here." the snake said, a series of hissing sounds following, making the rose glow faintly.

"The next one who touches the rose will be brought here... don't you dare disobey me muggle, if you just drop the rose somewhere it will come with great pains for you. One which might just kill you..." the snake said as its eyes, which would seem as black as an obsidian if not for the slightly lighter brown colour lining the slit of a pupil, neared the man's face until they were few centimetres from him. "And believe me, it might just happen if I want..."

Once saying that the snake turned around and slithered away.

The threat however rang through the scared man's mind still.

...

"What happened Sir?" Arthur Weasley asked when the man owning the carriage he was ordered to ride came back from the garden pale-faced.

"_Nothing!_" the man snapped. "Just drive back." he said, already climbing back into the carriage which seemed too small for someone his weight.

"As you wish sir." Arthur sighed as he took the reins.

The reason for his current Master's fear was however gnawing at him the whole way back to the Mansion.

...

"I have to go, Uncle is going to return soon." Harry smiled sadly at the woman who became a mother-figure-of-sorts to him.

"You're always welcome when you're free, dear." Molly Weasley smiled back at him, waving her wand to clear the table on which an empty plates and glasses were. At that movement Harry could not help but feel a pang of jealousy. He however quickly pushed it aside.

"Thank you Mrs Weasley, I really appreciate that." Harry smiled sincerely. "Tell Ron I said hi... and to the others also."

"Of course I will. It's a pity you and Ron missed each other again, but you know him, once he gets his mind on something - or someone this once - it's hard to make him come home. What was the girl's name?"

"Hermione." Harry laughed. "He really seems taken this time, not like the other girl few weeks back."

"It really seems so this time... but don't worry you'll soon see him again... and twins also. They are just so busy as of lately, opening their own shop and all that..."

"Yeah I know." the Weasley matron did not know that, but Harry had a part in the shop's start. Even having no money he helped with the items the twins invented. He may have not been permitted to be taught and to use magic, however that did not ban him from learning the art of potionery. He learned everything he could from what the Weasley family told him about it and helped twins to create some of their products, even going as far as inventing few of his own. He however did not want to be mentioned at all. What if his uncle got to know?

Harry was brought out of his musing by a sound of hooves on the path leading to the Mansion.

"I have to go!" he cried out, nearly knocking over the chair he sat on as he quickly stood up. "Thank you for everything Mrs Weasley. I'll stop by if I have time."

"Of course deary." the red-headed woman smiled, pitying the boy a bit, knowing a bit about the harsh treatment he got. "See you soon."

"Hopefully." Harry only said as he sprinted out of the back door.

He however had a feeling that it will not be soon that he will have a chance to come back to that house.

...

Vernon Dursley held the rose to the point of having the sharp thorns soon piercing his skin. It was a wonder the thorns could get through the layer of fat to the blood, but the red liquid was soon dripping in slow drops down the man's palm. And it did so until the moment the man got out of the carriage in his mansion.

"Daddy! Did you bring me... Wow! What is this!? Can I touch...?"

"NO!" the man screamed, cutting off the rant of his son who stopped reaching out for the glowing rose immediately in shock. His father _never_ forbid him from doing anything so far.

The man's thoughts however were to get rid of the glowing object as soon as possible and so he searched for the boy he hated with passion. He saw him just going through the door of the house of the red-headed servants, which in normal circumstances would earn the boy immediate punishment of thirty whips across the back... that day however Vernon Dursley had to skip that favourite way of torture to the boy, for it was not one of those the boy had not yet managed to learn resistance to. Having his back whipped every other day at least the skin never healed properly and so he always started to cry out in pain about halfway through his punishment... Ah, how much Vernon loved torturing the young wizard.

"_Freak!_ Come here!" he yelled, causing the said boy to freeze on the spot, then come in rush before the Master of the house.

"What is it Uncle?" Harry asked weakly, already imagining the pain which was to come.

"Come with me..." Vernon said only, walking as fast as he could - which was not much - in the direction of the Mansion.

As Harry walked slowly after the man he was confused. Usually the man would be already describing just how much pain he will bring to him and how much he would enjoy it... why not today?

Harry's confusion grew even more when the Dursley lead him and stopped in front of _Dudley's_ room of all.

"Get in!" he ordered and Harry did just that.

As the Master of the house started one-handedly searching his son's wardrobe Harry was already asking himself whether the man has finally gone mad... or maybe he suffered some apoplexy of sorts?

"Put this on!" came yet another order.

'He's giving me _clothes_? How weird can it get?' Harry asked himself as he started redressing, the first piece of clothing he got in a year, turning around as his uncle seemed to have no intention of leaving.

Even if the shirt must have been the smallest Dudley owned it still looked too big on Harry, for he was quite a few sizes smaller than his cousin. The pants were one of the few charmed ones Dudley owned - Harry was sure there will be a quite a loud screaming fit from the boy if he was really to get them - and resized themselves on him. Same went for the shoes.

As Vernon Dursley looked at him with his eyes narrowed Harry knew that the man was definitely not happy to give him the clothes. Only seeing them seemed enough for the man to beat the life out of him he was sure. What was the reason for all this however?

Even as the boy was wondering he did notice the man coming closer. And soon he was standing in front of him.

"Now listen, _freak_..." the fat man spat out. Only at that moment did Harry notice just how tightly was the man gripping the rose he held out before his face. "Once I'll give you this you'll go away. You will not speak of what is happening here, of the treatment, punishments,_ nothing_ you hear?"

"Yes Uncle."

"You're from a loving family which was very sad to send you away, you get it?"

"Yes Uncle."

The man seemed a bit reluctant about sharing the next information, however he did not want to risk it to backfire on him - as it would if he lied, probably - and so he said it.

"Your birthday is on 31st of July."

Harry stared in shock at the man in front of him. The man _swore_ not to say the date of his birthday to him, it was one of the first punishments Harry remembered. How bad a situation has to be if the man is willing to share the information with him? Harry somehow cared only a bit for that at the moment however. Because knowing that piece of information he somehow felt more complete.

"Yes Uncle."

"Hopefully you'll be eaten by that thing."

"What?"

Harry however did not get an answer to that for his uncle pressed the glowing rose into his hand at that... and he was whisked away.

_... there is a price to every wish._

...

"Oh, my... here already? One would have thought the man would prolong it." were the first words Harry heard when he came to a bit. It took a bit longer before he opened his eyes though.

"Where am I?" Harry asked looking around, everything being a blur as his glasses must have fallen off. And so he searched around himself, hoping that they did not crash.

"In my casstle." the voice answered, dragging the "s" on a bit.

"Huh? A castle?" Harry asked a bit confused as he still searched for his glasses.

"Were you told _anything_?"

"Not much..." Harry admitted as he finally came upon the legs of his glasses, bringing them to his eyes.

When he put them on he came face to face with the giant snake his uncle has met already. His reaction was however miles different from the one his uncle had.

"Wow..." he whispered to himself as he reached out his hand to touch the snake, being more than fascinated by the snake's shiny scales and its deep, knowing_ almost_ obsidian-black eyes. The creature however shifted a bit to not allow that, somehow finding funny the look of wonder in the boy's eyes.

"What is your name child?" the snake asked, the amusement a bit readable in the voice.

"Harry."

"So... Harry. Welcome to my castle. You may call me Severus."

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**Woohoo~**

**What do you think so far? :3 Also.. a POLL on my profile (about the possibility of MPREG in the story)**

**Review please? o(O.O)o**

**See ya~ ( "-.-)/**


	2. Single Word, Second to Be Appreciated

**... Depths of Black ...**

**2. Single Word, The Second to Be Appreciated**

After the bare introductions Harry had been told to follow the snake into the castle.

Being thrown into the situation at hand the way he had been Harry had quite an inner turmoil going on. Thanks to it he did not notice the two of them had arrived on the intended location until he nearly greeted the door with his face as they swung back after the snake came through.

In that room food had been prepared, the room being a dining room of sorts. Or maybe it should have been called a dining hall?

The room in which the food was served was a grande one. Harry had a feeling that Severus liked it out of pure comfort, not having to restrain himself from movements, given his size... And if he dared to ask, he might have found out his thought to be true. His enforced submissiveness however did not let him. One of the first rules ever taught to him was not to ask questions.

Even years of that however did not help when a small being appeared next to him and brought him a glass of juice. And he asked the snake as soon as the creature disappeared.

"What was that?"

"That was a House Elf, a servant..." the snake said as he curled on one side of the room, his head placed on the rest of his body in a way which enabled him to watch Harry still. "Doesn't your uncle have House Elves? He seemed well off."

"My uncle has..." Harry swallowed the "me" which has tickled on his tongue and replaced the word with something different. "... human servants. The only magic one would find if searching the Mansion would be in things Uncle brings to Cousin."

'What about you?' Severus felt like asking, feeling the magic the boy held, his senses being able to pick up the gentle hum of it. He however chose to try explain the matter a bit further instead.

"It is not unusual for muggles to have magical servants at home, they are associating with us after all."

"Muggles? Us?" Severus already thought that there was something wrong with the way the boy dressed, behaved and most of all arrived, but his obvious lack of knowledge was astounding.

"Muggles, the people without magic." Severus explained. When he saw the understanding of the fact in the boy's eyes he continued. ""Us" meaning the magical folk. Wizards, witches, creatures..."

"Ah, like the Weasleys." Harry understood. He has always knew that there are people with and without magic, however no one thought to tell him correct terms for that.

"Weasley? I think I've heard that name before. Don't they have a shop on the Diagon Alley or something?" Severus asked, trying to remember.

"They do. The twins have just opened it recently. How would you know, sir?"

"It's Severus and... What do you mean by "How"?"

"Umm..." Harry by no means wanted to be rude, he only wondered how could a creature which took up quarter of the room exactly frequent the shopping alley the Diagon Alley was. And so his eyes only slid to the rest of the snake's body, thinking just how big the snake was, even if curled like that.

"Ah, true. I don't exactly seem like a type to go around for walk, do I?" Severus said in amusement. "I knew from The Prophet. It's as much of a human touch as I can get here."

"I'm sorry, I did not mean to be disrespecting." Harry said in a tiny voice, his head bowed. It was as the boy's hands slid of the table with that motion that Severus noticed that he ate nearly nothing.

"I'm not going to punish you for asking questions, Harry." Severus sighed, he really needed to have a look into the boy's background. He however needed to have a degree of his trust first, for he did not mean to sort through his mind uninvited. Who knew how the boy with untrained magic would react to that. Or how his magic would for that matter. "Just eat."

Saying that the snake curled into a spiral fully and fell asleep, the soft clinking of the cutlery accompanying him on his way there.

...

Once Harry ate what has been laid before him he sat in the chair still, not knowing what to do. The House Elf which appeared to take away the dishes disappeared just as quickly. The Master of the castle was sleeping silently from what Harry could tell. And he would get lost in the castle if he tried to find way back to the entrance... not to mention that Harry did not want to risk one of the very few beings that did not seem to come to hate him on first sight by roaming his house unallowed... and so he just sat, waiting.

Only if he did not feel so sleepy...

...

Severus woke up to a soft sound of distress.

Being the light sleeper he was it did not take much to wake him and so even though the volume of the sound has been low it woke the snake just enough to start to search for its source immediately.

He found the source in the boy who still was on his seat by the table, however seemed to have fallen asleep at some point and by the twitching of his muscles, the sounds which escaped his lips and the way his facial expressions changed from bad to worse it was easy to guess that he must have gotten caught in throes of a nightmare.

'What could he have nightmares about?' Severus could not help but wonder as he slid across the floor to get closer to the distressed boy.

"Don't..." The boy's whisper was almost inaudible even from the shortened distance. "Please don't..."

Severus watched the boy for a while, not knowing what to do. He however did not really need help choosing the option when the boy's whimpers became louder and tears started streaming down his face.

"No!" Harry cried out in his sleep as his body jerked when he must have wanted to push away someone in his dream and he would have fallen off the chair if the snake did not support it with his tail. Moment later he came to a decision that he did not want to watch the boy's tortured sleeping pattern anymore and poked the boy with the tip of his tail until the said boy was startled awake.

Harry looked around himself in confusion as he shot up from the chair only to crumble back into it later as the room swayed from his point of view. Once the dizziness which came with it passed he looked around the room once more.

"Where..." he asked, however soon his eyes fell on Severus.

At first he smiled a bit, however his smile fell quickly and he bowed his head again as he spoke to the snake.

"I'm sorry, sir. I..."

"There's not need to be sorry for something like that Harry." Severus said, wishing that as a snake he could actually sigh.

'Was he punished in past when something of the sort happened? When anything of the things he apologizes for happened?' the snake could not help but wonder. Which made him think of the reason for the boy's presence in the room.

"Why didn't you leave when you finished your food?" Severus asked, seeing that it was already getting dark outside, which meant that few hours must have passed already from their lunch.

"You did not a..." Harry swallowed the "allow me to" he wanted to say. The snake was aware what was about to have been said however he let it pass for the moment and listened as the boy restructured his sentence. "I'm sorry sir, but I did not yet get to know where I shall be staying during my stay here and I though it rude to wander around the place without your knowledge."

"Severus, I said... Why didn't you wake me then?" Severus asked, already thinking of giving up on the hope of the boy ever calling him by his name.

The expression he received from Harry when the question was spoken could only be described as frightened. Harry's eyes widened and he paled considerably. It also did not go unnoticed by the snake that the boy's arms subconsciously reached to wrap around his ribs.

'So a beating?' Severus analysed from the boy's behaviour. He was by then sure that the boy was mistreated. It was however yet to be discovered just how badly.

...

Harry looked at the snake who seemed to study him from his place and only when a shiver ran through him did he notice the arms he has wrapped around himself, in a subconscious feat of self-protection. It never helped anyway, but at least it were his arms that got broken at times. "Ribs would have been tricky." Mrs. Weasley always said to him when having to repair his broken bones.

"I'll show you around the castle." Severus said, causing the boy to snap out of his reverie.

He was actually quite interested in what more could he expect from the stony structure.

...

Seeing the boy run back and forth in the gallery full of mostly moving paintings Severus was glad that he thought to have brought the boy in there.

Harry was running from one painting to another, greeting all the people in them politely, always bowing when he realized he was speaking to someone of a higher circle which - given the contents of the gallery - pretty much equaled to having the boy take turns between walking, bowing and speaking.

_"One will never be bored with you, or will I be?"_ Severus hissed to himself in amusement over the boy's behaviour. However what he would have never even _dared_ to guess was that the boy understood his words... and so when a response to the language of snakes came he could only straighten his stature, the only possible way to show his shock.

"Why wouldn't you be?"

The answer came in a language of humans. It was at that moment that Severus realized that the boy was probably not aware of his rare gift.

_"What an interesting child you are..."_ he continued in the ancient language of serpents, hoping to draw the actual words from his new charge.

"Why would someone like _you_ think of _me_ as interesting?" the boy asked. It was almost pitiful how unaware of having some worth the boy seemed. There definitely had to be more to his upbringing than just the guess Severus had... much more to it. Harry was not behaving like someone brought up as the rich man's kid in any way and Severus wanted to find out the details all the more with each sign he saw on the boy.

_"Because there is more in you than you might think."_ Severus continued, leaning closer to the boy.

It was at that moment that Harry got to a distance from which his extended hand was able to reach to the scales, the closest distance the two of them got to in the short hours they spent in each other's presence.

In Harry's eyes the scales were equal to jewels. He thought so from the very first moment he had looked at them. And it was when Harry's hand touched the scale that a series of low hissing sounds left his mouth.

_"Beautiful."_

Severus was not exactly the type that would bask in praise from others however to refuse the genuine appreciation from the boy who seemed to not exactly be spoiled in his previous life seemed wrong... and so the master of the castle let it pass by and let the boy's calloused hands feel his scales.

'You're the one who's beautiful here.' Severus could not help but think as he saw the boy's emerald eyes lit up in a second and a warm feeling of a content spread through his scaly body. He however would not dare to voice this one thought out loud. He himself did not understand what brought it up yet.

* * *

**Done~**

**I'm sorry not THAT much is happening in this chapter, and that it is even shorter than the first one - which has NEVER happened to me before - but I hope you enjoyed anyway (^^)**

**The POLL you were all told about - and in which surprisingly quite a lot of people voted in the short time I let it up - ended with an utmost victory of a "Yes" option, so yes, there will be an MPREG in this for you guys xD **(I somehow find the fact that no one disagreed with the possibility of Mpreg as amusing xD)

_[ **Yes** (18 votes) » 90% ; __**It's up to you...** (2 votes) » 10% ; __**No** (0 votes) » 0% ]_

**Anyway... If you liked the chapter please do review, I appreciate that a great deal. (^^)**

**See ya~ ( "-.-)/**


	3. Single Question, The Third Time

**... Depths of Black ...**

**3. Single Question, The Third Time**

Once out of the gallery Severus continued to show Harry around the castle.

He's shown him the way to the gardens, the library, the Tea room, the Art room, the Music room as well as the room dedicated solely to weapons.

It did not go past Severus' notice that Harry did not seem to like the last one. He in fact seemed quite terrified of having to stay for longer time in the room. _That_ was clear to Severus as it was in the room full of weaponry that he saw the boy's eyes widen in fear as they spotted the ornate misericorde - the "mercy-giver" - which hung on the walls of his collectibles. It also did not slip his notice how the boy's hand rose to grip his shirt just above his heart unconsciously. It was pretty obvious that someone threatened him with one, describing in detail just how the long, narrow knife would be used...

Severus had idea about who that someone probably was. And it certainly would not be a mercy stroke the knife would deliver. Severus was _more_ than sure that the fat man he has seen not that long ago would enjoy truly thrusting the knife below the boy's slender neck and _down._ Straight into the heart...

Snapping himself out of his - less than optimistic - visions Severus led Harry out of the room quickly, making a note to himself to not take Harry there again if possible. After that he continued their stroll through the castle.

_"It used to be so lively here..."_ Severus hissed to himself, forgetting about the boy walking next to him silently for a split second as he slithered through the corridors with Harry by his side.

_"Grand balls, people, dance, laughter... All of it gone... No one stayed after..."_ the hissing sound of the snake's words could not hide the sadness dwelling in the reminiscence of past and the voice trailed off.

"What happened?" Harry asked, wanting to know what were the last words the snake was about to say. He did not like to see anyone in pain, that applied all the more to the being who has shown him nothing but kindness since his arrival.

The sound of Harry's voice snapped Severus out of his melancholy and the deep, nearly entirely black eyes focused on the boy.

"It disappeared." was what the snake replied in the language of humans, his voice cold. "Everyone, everything... All of it... Except for this empty castle... _and me_..."

Once the words died off on the forked tongue of the snake the two of them continued in silence, Harry's soft footsteps and the snake's scales sliding across the marble floor being the only sounds to disturb it.

...

Harry sat on the large bed in pure misery.

It was the biggest bed he ever saw, not to mention sat on... or was to sleep in. The hard floor he slept on in his "room" until then, only a thin blanket covering it, seemed so distant at that moment. Harry almost couldn't believe that it was only the day before that he was to sleep there last.

Yet Harry could not bring himself to really enjoy the bed's softness or even the size of the room for that matter. His own "room" not even having candle to light it up, despite the lack of window... For fact the "room" he had before was not even half of the size of the _bed._ Harry however could not keep his thoughts on that.

His mind kept going back to the pain-filled voice which had been replaced by cold words... and then by silence.

Even when showing him the room he was to sleep in it stayed. Severus only hissed something in language Harry did not understand, but remembered the Weasley used it for magic, and the glowing rose Harry appeared in the castle with was suddenly on the bed. After that the master of the castle himself slithered into a room few doors down the corridor.

The message in that was more than understood.

'Stupid question... Because of one stupid question.' the boy suffered in his mind as he curled into himself. 'Haven't I learned a lesson already? Questions are no good.'

Soon however the weariness of the day caught up with him and he fell into restless sleep. With dreams full with tiny black rooms and shiny, soothing scales.

...

Harry was not the only one who had restless thoughts that night. Unlike Harry however, Severus was not able to sleep.

His mind kept going haywire... back to the misericorde. 'Why would anyone ever threaten a child with that?'

... to the nightmares he had woken Harry from. 'What was it that he feared so much in those dreams? Who was endangering him there?'

But mainly to the boy's unnatural submissiveness. 'That's not something one is born with, nor something one would learn overnight. Not even in few weeks.' Severus suspected that the rule "to obey" must have been beat into the boy throughout his whole short life... and quite literally so.

Pondering over the boy, his mind returned to the question Harry asked. Even being the sore topic it was, maybe he's overreacted a bit?

'It does not matter now.' the snake shook his scaly head. 'I'll speak to him tomorrow.' he agreed to himself. 'What will the few hours matter?'

...

It was however the next morning only that Severus found out just how wrong his estimation was.

Sleeping through the coldest hours of the day it was not until the sun rose that he woke up and slithered through the corridor to find Harry. As he peeked into the boy's appointed room, he could not see the occupant anywhere in sight.

Hissing out a command he summoned one of the House Elves.

"Where's the guest?" he asked.

"Sir be in the kitchens. He helping the Elves." the House Elf said bowing.

"What? You took him to kitchens?" Severus asked, passing the way the Elf addressed Harry as a slip.

"No, sir. He finding his way there. He clean his room himself. Won't let the Elves do it. He also prepare the meal, clean the dishes after. He then start on cleaning the Dining Hall and then return to clean the kitchen. The Elves not know what to do with him. He not even speaking."

'Just how long has he been awake?' Severus wondered as he listened to the list of chores the House Elf gave him. It would have taken about three hours at the very least... and that would be if he was slacking in some of the chores.

And Harry somehow did not seem the type.

"I'll come there immediately." the master of the castle said and with that the House Elf bowed and disappeared.

And come Severus did.

He slithered to the kitchens quickly, his eyes scanning quickly for the boy the House Elf informed him of being there.

"Where is the guest?" Severus asked the first House Elf he saw there.

"Twinkle not knowing for sure, sir. He dust the Art room before, but that being ago." the Elf said in pure misery. It was not every day that the House Elves did not know of everything that was going on inside the castle, there not being much to check after all.

"Sir dust the gallery." another of the House Elves came at that moment. "Always bowing as he doing so."

'Should have thought of that.' Severus would have sighed if it was physically possible for a snake. Never thought to try though. He only slithered away from the kitchens which were too small for someone his size and turned to the direction of the gallery. He did not pay attention to the way Harry was addressed that time either.

...

"You're such a sweetheart." Severus heard the voice of his grandmother Sarah Kathleen Prince say. "What are you doing here?"

"Cleaning." came the reserved answer of a boy who was in process of dusting the lady's portrait with a dust cloth precisely, as Severus could see once he was closer to the half-open door.

"That I can see, my dear. What is that grandson of mine thinking, letting a guest work anyway?" the woman in the painting mused. She however soon returned to her previous thoughts. "I meant what are you doing here in the castle, dear? Surely you did not just pop out of the thin air?" she inquired.

"Well... It could be an accurate way to explain my arrival, but I really don't know. Uncle just sent me off here." Harry said, his hand falling to his side as he completed cleaning the frame of the late Lady Prince. He however did not move to another painting as he did with the other portraits. He just continued standing at one place, looking to a blank space.

"I don't know why I had been sent here. I don't know why I am here." Harry whispered, his hand tracing scars on his arms which Severus did not notice before. He was pretty sure they were not there before.

'Maybe he hid them with and accidental bout of magic?' Severus knew it could happen to someone who was not in control of their magic, just as Harry was. The fact that they _were_ there at all was bothering Severus more though. He could get to the core of the magic problem later.

"No one wants me anywhere. Should rid them of the problem." Harry continued on whispering in a nearly inaudible voice, walking out of Severus' field of sight.

As the boy's quiet muttering died off suddenly, Severus entered the room. Getting closer to the boy who stood by the window he noticed in horror that there were bleeding gashes on the boy's arms and probably sides if the blood seeping through the boy's shirt was anything to go by.

'He's inflicting wounds on himself with his magic?' Severus asked himself, trying to ignore the stench of blood as much as possible. It was however at that very moment that he heard a crack and one of the boy's arms wrapped itself around chest in a motion Severus has seen before.

'Worse...' He analysed quickly. 'He's just reopening, _recreating_ wounds someone had inflicted on him before.'

When another crack resounded through the room, this time louder, and Severus could only guess that it was one of the thicker bones - probably in his arm - this time around the snake was brought out of his stupor and called one of the House Elves. The Elf then had been ordered to bring potions from the Master's lab quickly and then pour them down the boy's throat.

The Calming Draught. The Blood Replenishing potion. Skelegro and the Dreamless Sleep potion. Those four potions caused the boy to fall asleep, the magic calming down also... It then started helping to heal the wounds it inflicted.

It was terrifying just what untrained magic could do to its wielder... Not to mention it was _at will_ that it did so. Severus was really curious just how powerful the boy could be if he had some practice. For that there would be time through later though. What was happening and had to be done now seemed to be of a lot more burning importance.

"Patch him up, clean him and bring him to his room." Severus ordered the Elf who still stood by Harry's side.

"Nilly will. Do all that and bring the young sir to his rooms, Nilly will." saying that the House Elf placed one of its hands on Harry's sleeping form and disappeared. Its words however stayed with Severus.

"Sir?" he hissed to himself. 'Why would they call him that?' It seemed to be no accident either, after all he has heard Harry being called that for the _third time_ already... not to mention from three different House Elves.

'I'll have to look into that.' Severus resolved himself. He however had one thing to do first.

...

Sliding through the corridors slowly, by the time Severus got to Harry's room the boy was already sleeping on the huge bed by one of the walls.

Having the potions coursing through his system he also seemed _way_ more peaceful than during the time he fell asleep in the Dining Hall. After all, no nightmares could get to him to plague his dreams at that moment.

What worried Severus was that Harry slept curled in a small ball, no matter how painful it had to be to do so with a broken rib or two and one of the bones on his left arms also - that arm wrapped in bandages after it had been checked by one of the Elves.

About all of that however Severus could not do a thing about at that moment. He could just hope that with time Harry would learn that he is in no danger in the castle.

'No danger... Well...' Severus dark eyes slid to the window, where it was still bright outside.

"There's still a few days." He whispered to himself. "Can tell him something before it comes."

Just how it will fare once the moonless night came... he however could only wonder.

* * *

**Done~**

**As much as it saddens me it is not that much of a long chapter either... well, at least you can see deeper into some issues which will come into full revelation later ;) .. I still hope you liked the chapter either way (^0^)/**

**See ya~ ( "-.-)/**


	4. Single Rule, Fourth Family Member

**... Depths of Black ...**

**4. Single Rule, Fourth Family Member**

The day after the incident in the gallery Harry did not speak, beside the barest necessity. And even then it was rare. The same went for the day after... and the one following.

Severus hated that he did not yet understand the boy enough to be able to help him. Not knowing how to help when one wants to is an unspeakable pain. Severus hated that he could not even _guess_ how to help the boy. For he managed to scare Harry into his shell in less than two days... too short a time to actually get to know much about someone. He only knew what he should avoid, some of the fears Harry held and which he had yet to get to the core of. Those however did not help him solve the mystery called Harry any further.

... and so he kept beating himself over it.

For lashing out over something he should have been long since over and dust has long since settled on.

For not being able to reach the boy through his haze of uncertainty and a drawn curtain of silence.

For feeling so helpless.

There was only one thing that Severus loathed more than his state of body, and that was feeling helpless.

For there was no thing such as hope in that dark state of mind.

...

It was during one of his night strolls across the castle, on day three since the "gallery incident", that Severus went to check on Harry on a moment decision.

And as his luck would have it, it was clear as day for him, when he opened the door, that he managed to see the boy caught in the throes of a nightmare yet again.

Apparently even accepting the mild version of Dreamless Sleep potion seemed too much of a step over line for Harry. Even though it appeared on his nightstand every night.

"I did not break the rule..." Harry whimpered pleadingly, curling into even smaller of a ball... It was not much of a change actually. He already seemed tiny compared to the huge bed.

"I'm sorry... It won't happen again... I won't let it happen again..." the words were said in a fast speed and were a bit slurred due to the one who was saying them being asleep, but Severus still heard what was being said and it only made him steel his resolve.

He had to find out just what had happened in the Manor of Dursley. He simply had to know just _what_ had frightened Harry so much there...

'What has Harry done to be the target of the hate of his relatives?' Severus could not help but ask himself. He however in a split second decided that time for reminiscing over that fact could be postponed.

'Now's the time to wake him.' he advanced closer to the boy, fitting more of his long, scaly body into the room. He was sure that poking the boy with the tip of his tail would be more agreeable in case the boy woke up immediately.

'How would he react if he opened his eyes and was face to face with a snake whose one eye was the size of his fist?'

"I will not Uncle..." the sound of Harry's voice brought Severus out of his thoughts and he realised that he has not done much to help the boy, yet. Severus knew instinctively that waiting in this case would be the wrong thing to do... and so he decided to use his skills and wake Harry with a tug on his mind.

"I never do..." the broken whisper, which sounded so loud in the silence of the room, was the last thing Severus heard before he delved into the boy's mind.

However it did not exactly go as planned.

...

_Harry found himself on the floor of the Grand Entrance Hall often, whimpering in pain, as lashes of whip landed on his back. For various reasons. Only one out of those reasons however earned a beating worse than the others._

_"What did I tell you freak?"_

_"I did not break the rule..." Harry tied to protest meekly._

_"You dare say Dudley would lie to me? Know your place!" Vernon raged as yet another lash found its way to the thin boy's back, adding to the pain. "You know the rules! All of them! Why is it this one you like to break so much? Do you enjoy your punishments? Are you even more of a freak than I had thought?"_

_"I'm sorry... It won't happen again." Harry whimpered, his back aching terribly over something he did not even do, deciding to disregard completely the last statement. He had heard worse thrown at him after all._

_"Remember that, you freak! I will be much harsher if you as much as think the name ever again! Rule number one: You are not to say name of either member of the family!" the man said, repeating the sentences a few times._

_"I will not Uncle..." Harry whispered only as he gathered himself from the floor to do the list of chores his uncle has thrown at him. "I never do."_

_That earned him a punch._

_... Or more like **should have** earned him a punch. The aimed fist however never reached the boy's jaw as was the intention. Not in this one dream of all._

_It was at that moment that Harry realised he was dreaming. There never had been someone to save him in "real" life. __He stared, amazed, at the tall man who was holding the curled fist of his uncle in his hand, not seeming to care the least that the fat man was thrice his size at least._

_"Wha...?"_

_Suddenly the Entrance Hall and Vernon Dursley disappeared and there was only Harry and the mysterious man in a room which resembled the grand Dining Hall of the castle much._

_"Who are you?" Harry asked, his voice trembling._

_He did not understand why the man was in his dream. Harry__ was sure he has never seen the man before._

_He did not understand why the man himself seemed so surprised to be in there. The way the man held his hand in front of his face, flexing his fingers as if never having seen them before, was not a gesture which spoke of having hold of the situation._

_At the sound of Harry's voice the dark-figure turned. Obsidian-black locking with emerald-green. And all too sudden Harry knew just whom he was facing._

_"Severus?"_

...

'What has just happened?'

Severus asked himself, astounded, when he found himself in his own body again, as the dream got cut off. It was not exactly a common occurence for someone to let another person into their dream. It being all the more unlikely if the "invited person" was not a lover, a spouse or the similar... even a long-time friend would do... In general it _should_ be someone with whom the dreamer had chance to set up a mind link with.

'It shouldn't have been possible to have been there, yet...'

Severus was confused with the situation. He however could not concentrate on trying to comprehend just how odd the situation was. Not when his own appearance in the dream has startled him so much.

'How long has it been since I was able to flex my fingers? Feel hair brush against the nape of my neck?' the snake ruminated as he stared at the shock-frozen boy on the bed. A boy who had yet to recover from the after-effect of the dream's about-turn.

'Far too long indeed.'

...

Harry stared.

He did not think. Nor did he try to think of how the dream could have come into existence.

He just stared.

Blankly, yet focused enough to look at the scaly body which took up most of the space in his assigned room.

'Is there really that man... Somewhere in that body?'

Harry could not gather his mind from the mess of confusion and questions it became. The pieces did not fit.

Was Severus indeed the man in his dream? If yes, how could he have gotten there? The black-haired himself seemed the most surprised to have been there after all.

"Are you okay?" Severus' voice brought Harry out of his reverie. That however did not make him able to make his vocal cords produce sound. Not yet, and so he only nodded.

"Good, do you need anything?"

_Shake._

"Was that a common occurence?"

As Harry numbly nodded in affirmation he only at the hiss which escaped the snake's mouth realised just what he has revealed. And suddenly his uncle's words came back to him.

_"Once I'll give you this you'll go away. You will not speak of what is happening here, of the treatment, punishments, **nothing** you hear?"_

_"You're from a loving family which was very sad to send you away, you get it?"_

Shivering overtook Harry's body. His arms wrapped themselves around the body tightly, in a reflexive way which got triggered every time Harry felt a beating was in order. There however was no Vernon Dursley in this castle. There only was a snake which read in the changes in Harry's behaviour as if in open book.

"I won't punish you for talking Harry." Severus said, hoping yet another time that sighing was possible in his state of body. "I however need you to tell me the truth."

Harry however did not seem inclined to answer. The words which meant a beating was to come sometime later still rang loudly in his mind.

"You won't return there, you know?"

That had gotten Harry's attention and the boy's head turned slowly.

"N-... No...?"

"Not if I can help it. I however need you to speak to me. I need to know just what I am shielding you from."

Harry hesitated for a long time. In the end he however realised that he _wanted_ to tell Severus. He wanted him to know, to share the burden of many, many secrets he's been forced to keep over the years.

As he got up from the bed and sat on the floor, leaning against the large body of the snake he did not care about what more punishments would come if he was to be sent back.

He did not notice slipping into Parseltongue as first of the words fell off his lips.

He only wanted the enigma called Severus to listen to him. Because maybe, if he shared some of his own fears, he could get to know some of Severus' also? He wanted to know just what caused Severus to be the way he was. What has happened to him to cage him in the large, scaly body? Why was it so painful to him to see the empty corridors?

"_My relatives were never a family to me... I was always only a nuisance to them. The fourth family member they never wanted..._"

...

Harry talked and talked.

He told Severus of the first memory he remembered having. The memory being dusting one of his aunt's vases.

He spoke about his assigned chores.

Punishments.

His so called family...

But also of the few happy memories he gathered during his short life.

Especially about the red-headed family of which most members were forced by situation to work for the tyrant called Vernon Dursley.

By the end of the day Severus felt as if he had known the boy for years instead of mere days. And it multiplied intensity of the need to protect the boy he felt.

Even the tension which resided whenever the two had come across each other has disappeared and got replaced by a pleasant feeling of ease.

Severus however knew that a time which would interrupt this newly forming atmosphere was speeding against them.

'The new moon will be tomorrow.' Severus thought grimly, looking at the boy who fell asleep, leaning onto his scaly body. He dreaded to tell Harry. He did not want the first person to accept him like that to run away screaming.

'If only there was more time.'

* * *

**Done~**

**Next time - showtime xD I hope you're eager to read more. It should be up by the end of May **_(wishful thinking)_** or so.**

**Sorry for the lateness, I really appreciate that you're still waiting for more :)**

**See ya~ ( "-.-)/**


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